Les Trois Chenes, From Videix, Limousin, South West France, 357 Fans, 126 Hubs, Joined 3 years ago
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Amanda Severn Interviews Les Trois Chenes
Insights on Writing, Painting, Food, and Life in Southwestern France
Thank you, Barbara for agreeing to be interviewed for HubPages. Could you tell us a little bit about yourself?
When I was young and my life stretched out before me, I realized that the one thing I feared most was boredom. I can honestly say that so far I have never been bored!
My life has been chaotic, creative, rich, a tiny bit scary, and infinitely varied. Although there are some fixed themes that run through my life I'm also very much like Toad of 'Wind in the Willows' and I find that I constantly have passions, whims, enthusiasms and projects that I throw myself into wholeheartedly. One of these passions resulted in moving to Limousin, South West France where I now run a guest house, holiday cottage and painting courses.
There are many small, ephemeral enthusiasms but also there are some 'big' constant themes to my life – I was brought up in the City of York. I'm an artist and art historian, a wife and mother. I've always loved renovating houses and still hope to build my own eco-house. I'm interested in the land, gardening and ecology. I enjoy food and eating, cooking, gardening, and keeping animals. I'm an avid traveler and relish moving and change. Sadly though, all this and the little problem of earning a living means that I don't have time to paint professionally.
I've drawn all these various threads together by training firstly as a painter, then as a Landscape Designer (to earn money and have a 'proper' job) and then, in France, as a plumber. With my husband I've renovated our French farmhouse and converted a barn to form a lovely three star gite and we live here with our son, our dog and cat. I've even been able to keep goats, sheep, bees, hens, and geese.
In short I strive to have a pleasant, varied, and fulfilled life.
When did you start writing online, and what inspired you to do so?
I began to write online when I designed the website for our B&B, gite, and painting holiday business - according to my HubPages profile that was over three years ago. I was new to the world of the internet and had to first learn website design and then to learn how to promote the site once created. At the time backlinks were an important part of being noticed by Google. At this point I came across HubPages and realized that I could write articles to promote our business and the Limousin region and that, in turn, would direct traffic to my site and give me those all-important backlinks
It took me a while to realize that I could earn money from writing online.
The topics that you cover in your Hubs are quite varied. They include art, recipes, food commentary, travel, Limoges porcelain, and gardening. What would you say was your favorite topic, and can you tell us why?
The topics that I write about are almost all about my day-to-day life. The things that I do, the things I like, and the places I've been to. I'm lucky enough to have had a rich and varied background and life here in the French countryside has brought yet more experiences and challenges. Without a doubt, the things I enjoy writing about the most are those topics that I want to know more about. I love doing research and find that writing an article about a subject is a wonderful way to organize my thoughts and store the information. Inevitably I find new information to augment the articles and so, over time, I hope that they will become a good resource for myself and perhaps for others too.
How did you find out about HubPages and what do you find most rewarding about writing Hubs?
I stumbled across an article on HubPages and somehow realized that I could write on HubPages too. For my very first attempt I remember that the article that HubPages had chosen as a model for new writers was an article about making yogurt. My mother-in-law is from the countryside of Turkey and she made yogurt without all the machines and contraptions that people use now so I thought – I can write about the method of yogurt-making that she had taught me. It is still one of my most successful Hubs today.
What do I find most rewarding about HubPages. Well, I'll admit it's not the money – I make very little. HubPages has driven a lot of traffic to my website – so that has been a success. I have learnt so much about the internet from HubPages, and about writing online and finally, I love meeting all the other Hubbers – it is a real community. Most of all, though, I see writing articles as a creative activity that involves research, information, ideas, organization, photography and images. It keeps me mentally alert, perhaps going some way towards replacing the needs that my painting used to fulfill.
You have written an interesting article about food, and why so many children refuse to eat anything that isn't heavily processed. How do you think this trend could best be reversed?
Ah, yes. So easy to point to a problem but so hard to solve it. In the article I have outlined what I see is the problem with food – a huge problem that covers politics, sociology, finance, working patterns - in short, modern life. I've also pointed to some ways that I think individuals can solve the problems.
On a larger scale I think celebrity chefs like Jamie Oliver are doing good work; his fifteen minute meals really are great although they did take me a bit longer to prepare.
Education is clearly key. Schools, governments, midwives, health visitors, and social workers all have a role to play. When I became pregnant with my first child, I was given, free of charge, an excellent book on baby and child care and perhaps something similar could be given to each family. Expensive ? Yes. Worth it? I would think so. How much money would it save the government in health bills over the years ?
The government also has to tackle the issues of poverty and big international businesses. The food industry must be forced to produce good, healthy food. Whilst they have to make profits, this should not be at any cost. We have to stop sacrificing our children to capitalism.
Life in Limousin is greatly featured in your writing - what drew you to relocate to France?
Easy question – the good life ! In England the weather was bad, housing expensive, transport tedious, pollution and crime high, and quality time non-existent. When I had my son I wanted to bring him up in a safe, clean, and healthy environment. Here in Limousin, all my hopes have been fulfilled. We have clean air, good food, a safe environment, stable and settled communities, excellent health care and a great education system. We can afford a lovely home with a big garden here. We have space and we have sunshine.
You have written a number of travel Hubs. Are there any places that you have yet to visit that are on your list? Would you ever relocate again to another country?
Everywhere! Reading all the Hubs that you and other Hubbers write about your home towns and favorite holiday destinations gives me itchy feet. I see a world of wonderful places to visit and things to see, do, and eat. As my husband is Turkish, I do harbor a bit of a dream of really exploring Turkey, but then we haven't even begun to exhaust the list of places to see in France or even England.
Relocation? Well, sometimes I'm not sure if I could cope with all the administration and the steep learning curve that takes place when you move to another country – not to mention the language – but at other times I think of my first love affair with Italy, or how warm Andalusia is in November, or how much my son's German would improve if we moved to the Black Forest... so who knows ?
You write with passion about art and the practical aspects of choosing and using art materials. What is your favorite medium for creating a work of art?
I do love drawing with charcoal and pastels, but I also love the sensuous qualities of paint. I suppose that's why I often choose mixed media, combining a whole range of drawing media, inks, and acrylics together as the inspiration takes me. Oils are less convenient because they smell rather. I love the smell but the odor of oil paint and turpentine is not enjoyed by everybody, and they take a long time to dry. However, the beauty of oil paint in the hands of a true master is breathtaking and I worked hard to master the art. How I would love to paint like Bellini, Rembrandt, or Jasper Johns!
Writing and painting can both be highly creative processes. Do you prefer one above the other, and if so why?
I think of myself as a painter first and foremost and would just love to have the luxury to paint full time. I have plenty of space to paint here in France and certainly a wealth of inspiration but, sadly, I lack the private income necessary to go with it ! Money can't buy you happiness, but it can buy you time.
I love writing but I am most definitely an amateur. Since writing for HubPages, I've begun to take photographs to illustrate my articles and have now discovered sites like Zazzle where I can market those photographs, so in a way HubPages has brought me back to the visual arts, albeit in a round-about way.
Perhaps I'll put more energy into learning how to take better photos and then I'll have yet another subject to write about.
Is there anything you would like to add?
I'd like to thank you, Amanda, for choosing to interview me – I was amazed to read your HubPages interview and to see how very close our careers and interests have been.
I'd like to say hello and thanks to all the other writers on HubPages that I've met. They have inspired, entertained, informed, helped and supported me in so many ways over the last few years. And thank you to HubPages - an education in itself.
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